New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels isn’t running from what went wrong last February, when the Seattle Seahawks dominated his offense in Super Bowl LX.
“I didn’t do a good enough job. Point it at me. They ‘out-everythinged’ us in the game,” McDaniels said on Sunday.
“We have a lot of things we’ve learned. But I think this will be a different game, I think it will be a new game. It’s a new year. We have some different players. They have a few guys that are new. We’ll see how different it is. They certainly found some opportunities last year, and hopefully we’ve done a good job trying to limit those Wednesday night.”
After being one of the best offenses in football during the regular season, the Patriots’ unit struggled down the stretch against some of the league’s best defenses.
That ended with a 29-13 loss in the Super Bowl to the Seahawks, when Drake Maye was sacked six times. New England’s offense was gashed by Seattle’s pressure packages while rookies Will Campbell and Jared Wilson struggled on the left side of the offensive line.
Ahead of the rematch to open the 2026 NFL season, McDaniels is excited to see the growth from Campbell, Wilson — who is back at his natural center position — and the rest of his second-year players.
Campbell, specifically, struggled in the Super Bowl while playing through a sprained right MCL. Now healthy, McDaniels has enjoyed the approach from his starting left tackle to start the year.
“He’s had a really good mindset all year. Locked in,” McDaniels said of Campbell. “He had a good spring, good [training] camp — trying to work on the things he knows at his position are important and critical to his improvement.”
New England’s new-look offensive line, which also features free agent addition Alijah Vera-Tucker, will be tested again Wednesday night. The Seahawks front returns the majority of its unit, while McDaniels noted the challenges that head coach Mike Macdonald’s defensive scheme presents.
Still, the Patriots offensive coordinator feels confident in their offensive game plan and said the players have a good week of preparation. He also has quarterback Drake Maye in a better spot after spending their second full offseason together.
“Drake just knows a lot more than he did last year in general at this time. And he’s learned a lot of valuable lessons I think over time,” McDaniels said. “He’s also had a great mindset and approach this spring and summer about the things that he can do better and he’s worked really hard. Nobody’s worked harder.
“I know he’s eager to get out there and actually play a game and see how far we’ve come.”
